Wire
Everything you need to know about Delta Robotics' Nitinol wire—specs, performance, control, and best practices for high-performance actuation.
🔧 Nitinol Wire: What It Is, What It Does, and How Not to Break It
At Delta Robotics, we sell wire that moves. Not like electrical current (though yes, that too) — we’re talking real, physical motion. Our Nitinol wire contracts when you heat it, and then cools back into shape. It's kind of like a tiny, silent robot muscle.
This page is here to help you understand what our wires can do, how to use them, and how to not ruin them on Day One.
🧪 What You’re Working With (Product Overview)
Let’s start with the basics. Here’s what’s in the box:
Material: Nickel-Titanium (aka Nitinol — it’s a shape memory alloy)
Form: Straight annealed
How It Works: Joule heating (just run current through it)
Lengths: 1 ft, 5 ft, 10 ft (custom lengths if you ask nicely)
Diameters: 0.5 mm, 1.0 mm, 2.0 mm
Activation Temp: ~90 °C (hot, but not melt-your-desk hot)
By default, our wires are trained straight. Want them to curl, bend, or do something wild? Train your Nitinol here →
📐 NiTi #5: Wire Specs (But Fun)
NiTi #5 is a high-temp Nitinol alloy that kicks into action around 85–95 °C. The data below is a combo of manufacturer specs, lab tests, and a healthy amount of calculator abuse.
⚠️ We’re still validating these numbers across labs and field tests. If you’re a Nitinol nerd and spot something weird — let us know!
Property
0.5 mm
1.0 mm
2.0 mm
Resistance (Ω/m)
~4.3 Ω
~1.1 Ω (estimated)
~0.27 Ω (estimated)
Heating Pull Force (g)
~3,560 g
~14,240 g (est.)
~56,960 g (est.)
Cooling (Bias) Force (g)
~1,424 g
~5,696 g (est.)
~22,784 g (est.)
Contraction Current (~1s)
~4 A
~16 A (est.)
~64 A (est.)
Cooling Time (90 °C, air)
~14 s
~40 s (est.)
~100 s (est.)
Max Recommended Strain
5%
5%
5%
🎯 Use 3–4% strain if you want your wire to last longer than a weekend.
🔄 How Long Will It Last?
Here’s the short version: less strain = longer life. Push it too far, and it’ll break up with you.
Strain
Cycle Life
2%
1,000,000+ cycles
4%
100,000+ cycles
6%
10,000–20,000 cycles
8%
2,000–5,000 cycles
>8%
💀 Don’t say we didn’t warn you
🧠 Control It Like a Pro
ThermoFlex™ Node Controller
All of our wires work with our ThermoFlex™ Node Controller, built by people who really love robots (and hate magic smoke).
Pre-made wire profiles (coming soon)
USB & Serial control (yes, you can script it)
Built-in current & resistance sensing
60 A output — enough to power even 2 mm wire for an under 1-second contraction time
It runs on Arduino Minima, talks over CAN, and supports up to 200 devices from one USB cable. Also? It helped us shape-set actuators electrically before we got a fancy furnace. Nerd cred confirmed.
Read the Nitinol Training Guide →
❄️ Cooling Tips
Want your wire to move faster? Get it cold, quickly.
Air Cooling ~14 s for 0.5 mm ~40 s for 1.0 mm ~100 s for 2.0 mm (That’s in still air — use a fan!)
Liquid Cooling Up to 100× faster. Yes, really. We’re building a system just for this. Stay tuned.
🔩 How to Mount It (Without Tears)
Getting the wire connected is an underrated art form. Here's your cheat sheet:
Physical Mounting
Screw-down clamps
All sizes
Best combo of secure + simple
Wrap-around posts
Light duty setups
Just make sure it’s tensioned well
Crimps
Low-force only
Fatigue risk at higher loads
Electrical Connection
Screw terminals
Most setups
Best choice. Easy to adjust, high current capable
Alligator clips
Prototypes only
Handy but not reliable for real-world use
Soldering
⚠️ Not recommended
Unless you’re a chemist (see below)
🧪 Experimental: Soldering Nitinol
Don’t try this at home — seriously.
Yes, it’s technically possible. But first you have to:
Strip the oxide layer using hydrofluoric acid (don’t unless you know how to)
Electroplate with nickel
Then maybe — maybe — your solder will stick (still experimental)
We only do this in the lab, and we’re trained. This isn’t a weekend project.
✅ Best Practices (a.k.a. How Not to Mess It Up)
✅ Use screw terminals or mechanical anchors
🚫 Avoid soldering (unless pre-tabbed)
⚖️ Pre-tension slightly — but don’t stretch it
🔁 Stay under 5% strain if you want it to last
📚 Sources & References
For the curious, the nerdy, and the skeptical — here are some external referances:
Fort Wayne Metals Shape Memory Nitinol NiTi Actuator Wire Datasheet (PDF)
1.0 mm and 2.0 mm values are extrapolated from 0.5 mm data using basic math, standard assumptions, and coffee.
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